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[jabead]

Then also sent to us this morning, was an update from Rachel (rachel09985).


She sent us a couple of pics from her dinner last night at...



Artist Point



The first was of her extra side dish (which was included with Deluxe Dining Plan)...

Butternut Squash Risotto


Rachel said, "It was bad. I didn't taste any butternut squash!"





And the other pic was of her dessert...

Artist Point Cobbler with seasonal berries and housemade ice cream


Rachel said, "The berry cobbler was amazing!!! It was one of my favorite desserts ever!"
​

1 January Game Point Earned (due to lack of an entree pic)

 

[jabead]

This afternoon we received an update from Christina (DisneyMamato4).


She and her family were at Magic Kingdom today and had lunch at...



Liberty Tree Tavern

Christina said, "Nothing too exciting for lunch. We all got burgers. They were good and the french fries are super yummy!"





Then later it was time for a snack...

"Lizzie wanted a Mickey ice cream bar."

"And so did Jack."

"Two of us got the Dole Whip Swirl."

"Little Anna wanted some too but I think she'll have to wait until next year."
​

4 January Game Points Earned + 3 Bonus Points for pics of the kids

 

[jabead]

Next we received an update from Robin (ciera321).


She and her family were at DHS today and had breakfast at...


Starring Rolls Cafe

Robin said, "We started our day with sugar from Starring Rolls. Cinnamon roll, chocolate eclair, and a blueberry muffin. All yummy as usual!"





Mama Melrose



"Lunch was Mama Melrose with Fantasmic! Package. I started with the tossed salad, which was pretty good, but I'm a salad snob. So maybe it was me?"

Mixed Greens Salad with fresh Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Artichoke Hearts, shaved Sopressata, and Red Wine-Oregano Vinaigrette





"Tim and Alex had the antipasti, which was not well received. It was bland and really lacking. Tim isn't picky and was very hungry, so I was surprised he didn't eat it."

Mama's Antipasto for Two - selection of Italian meats, cheeses, and marinated vegetables




"Entrees were a lot better. I had the Shrimp Campanelle. This was very cheesy pasta with broccoli, sun-dried tomatoes, basil and 5 large, perfectly cooked shrimp. Loved it!"

Shrimp Campanelle - wood-grilled shrimp over Campanelle pasta tossed with four-cheese sauce with broccoflower, sun-dried tomatoes, fresh spinach and sweet onions





"Tim had the chicken version of my entree and loved it as well. Looks pretty much the same in the picture."

Chicken Campanelle




"Alex was extremely happy with his Charred Strip Steak with Mac and Cheese. He declared it awesome."

Charred Strip Steak with five-cheese baked macaroni, aged balsamic-shallot butter, and Chianti Wine Reduction




"Dessert was not memorable at all. The Fantasmic! package includes a platter of 3 different desserts - cannoli (not like any cannoli I've ever had), cheesecake that Alex declared tasted like Play-Doh (don't ask ), and tiramisu, which was pretty good."

Fantasmic! Package Dessert Platter



Robin added, "Overall, we'd go back, but stick to our favorites - flatbreads and Chicken Parm."
​

4 January Game Points Earned

 

[jabead]

This evening we received our first update from Amanda (MissPrice).



She arrived at Disney World today and had her first Disney food at Magic Kingdom's...



Columbia Harbour House

Fried Fish & French Fries and Chocolate Cake for dessert


Amanda said, "We split this as a snack. Pretty standard. Not as good as Rose and Crown."




Then Amanda stopped in at Gaston's Tavern to try out the LeFou's Brew...

She said, "Surprisingly tart and sweet."




Then dinner was at...


Liberty Tree Tavern

Declaration Salad - Tossed mixed greens with housemade dressing


Amanda said "The salad was good. Tasted fresh."

Patriot's Platter - Roasted turkey breast, carved beef, and sliced pork, with mac and cheese, stuffing, garlic green beans, roasted root vegetables, and mashed potatoes


Amanda said, "Everything was good. Mac and cheese especially."

Johnny Appleseed's Cake - Tavern made White Cake filled with Apples and Craisins dried cranberries,
topped with vanilla ice cream


Amanda said, "Unfortunately we were too full to eat much of this."



Then for a late night snack, they had this back at their resort...


MARA

Pepperoni Flatbread & African Stew
Hearty stew with beef, turkey, ham, carrots, potatoes, peas, chickpeas, and raisins served over basmati rice


Amanda said, "DH said the flatbread was good. Crust was thin and crispy. I thought the stew had nice flavor, with African spices and tender chunks of meat."

​

9 January Game Points Earned + 1 Bonus Point for pic with LeFou's Brew

 

[jabead]

Then we received another update from Robin (ciera321).


She and her family headed to Downtown Disney tonight to have dinner at...


Wolfgang Puck Express




Robin said, "Wolfgang Puck Express Marketplace was dinner again tonight. We usually eat here twice, saving our TS credits for a Signature restaurant. I had the salmon with roasted potatoes, and baby greens. Very mild and cooked perfectly."

Oven-roasted Salmon, fennel, arugula, onions, roasted potatoes, tomato vinaigrette, and horseradish cream






"Tim tried the meatloaf sandwich and thought it was very good. It's a large sandwich, easily shareable."

Meatloaf Sandwich with Provolone cheese, Bacon, Tomato chutney, Horseradish cream, and crispy Onions





"Alex loves the pizza here and really enjoyed the pepperoni tonight! Thin and crispy crust, so good."

Pepperoni Pizza




"Dessert was a bit boring, but still tasty. Chocolate chip cookies."

​

2 January Game Points Earned

 

[jabead]

It's time to call it a night folks. But check back tomorrow for the rest of tonight's updates...from Rachel (rachel09985), quietgirl, and DonaldDoleWhip.
Until then, sweet "Disney" dreams. Good night!

 

[VACamm]

This is quite possibly the best thread on the Dis... Awesome!

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

I do the same with Istagram and my photos! I love Insty!
Just one more question and I will no longer high jack this thread
Any special setting you use on your P&S? I have an Olympus and sometimes I love the pics and other times.......well we'll just say I get frustrated lol!

Thank you!

Nope, I pretty much use the automatic setting on my camera. The main things I adjust on my P&S are the flash and the zoom - when the lighting isn't great, I like to use the flash. However, if I take the picture up close with the flash on, the picture comes out too bright. If I hold the camera further away and zoom in a lot, the picture is dark and blurry. It sometimes takes one or two tries to get a decent shot, but it's worth it.

With the iPhone, however, my procedure is always the same: take a high-definition picture without flash, and then Instagram it.

 

[jabead]

Good morning, everyone! We've already received updates this morning from three of our live reporters, so I'd better get to work and finish up with yesterday's updates.

Let's see, we still have Rachel's (rachel09985) last update of her trip, which she sent to us last night.

She spent her last day at Epcot, where she had lunch at...


Le Cellier



Rachel sent us a couple of pics from this meal...

The very popular pretzel breadsticks

Canadian Chocolate "Moose"


Rachel said, "Only two pics from Le Cellier but both delicious! I had an awesome lunch there."


Note from jabead: Since most of my DIS time has been spent here on the live thread lately, I've fallen behind on the Disney news. So I asked Rachel if Le Cellier lunch was now changed to a 2 credit meal?


Her reply, "Nope!! It changes the 16th. They said they think the new lunch menu will be pretty close to the dinner menu."


Note from jabead: This is not good news to me, since I really enjoy the Le Cellier burger, which was exclusive to their lunch menu previously. So I suspect that when the new menu comes out on the 16th, it will be bye, bye burger!

But anyway, to all of our live reporters going to the World after the 16th, I will be "upping" the ante on Le Cellier lunch. Any update from Le Cellier lunch (which includes at least one entree pic) from the 16th on will be awarded 5 January game points. Also the first reporter to send us a pic of the new Lunch menu will receive 5 Bonus points.




Ok, now getting back on track with the rest of Rachel's update.


Rachel had her last meal of this trip at...


Chefs de France

A glass of Chardonnay

Bisque de Homard - Lobster bisque

Gratin de Macaroni - Macaroni baked with cream Gruyere cheese

Vanilla Creme Brulee



Rachel said, "I didn't love the macaroni from Chefs de France. It wasn't bad but it was sooo heavy and rich that I couldn't eat half of it. I did love the creme brulee and lobster bisque though. Up there with the best I have ever had!"
​

4 January Game Points Earned + 1 Bonus Point for "enlightening" me regarding the date that Le Cellier lunch will change to a 2 credit meal

 

[jabead]

Since that was Rachel's final update of her trip, it's now time to say...




Thanks so much for being a Live Reporter...Good Job!!!





rachel09985's Total January Game Points Earned = 17




​

 

[jabead]

Next is an update sent to us last night by quietgirl.



She said, "Today was our Animal Kingdom day, and we were running a little late in the am, but we made it to the gates by 7:40. We hit some rides, walked the trails, and best of all made it over to Rafiki's Planet Watch to see some vet procedures. While there, we got to hang out with an old friend...."

Then they headed over to Kidani Village to have lunch at...

quietgirl said, "This was our first trip to Sanaa, it was actually our first trip to Kidani Village. We have stayed at Jambo house before, and LOVED it, so I was excited to check it out."




"This map helped us right after we got off the bus..."

"These lamps just outside the lobby were really pretty..."

"The lobby was much smaller than I was expecting...."

"But still very pretty..."

"We found Sanaa on the first floor and this hidden Mickey..."

"The inside of the restaurant was nice,"

"But in retrospect, I wish I had asked for a window table. We could see the animals with some extra effort (straining/stretching) and several of the window tables were empty- woulda been much nicer there."




Next some menu pics...

"So, we started off with bread service..."

"We chose the traditional naan, garlic naan, and spiced naan. For our accompaniments, we chose red pepper hummus, tamarind, and red chile. This was amazing! I'm not much of a bread person, but loved this! I wish we hadn't gotten the plain naan- it was good, but I wish we had tried something a little more adventurous. The red pepper hummus was the best, followed by the tamarind. The red chile was really good too, but it was also VERY spicy!"

"I got the short ribs and butter chicken with basmati rice...amazing! Lets just say when I was done, all the bowls were empty!"

"DGF had the butter chicken and spicy Durban chicken. She agreed that it was fantastic, and I tasted her Durban chicken too. We both agreed the butter chicken was the overall winner."




Next a Dessert Menu pic...

"For dessert, DGF ordered the Banana Kulfi Sundae, which she compared to a really fancy chunky monkey- trust me, for her that's high praise!"







"And I ordered the trio..."

"The cake was a little dry, and not much flavor, but the fruit kulfi had a nice light refreshing taste. That chai cream was amazing tho! I had read bits and pieces about it on these boards, and I'll admit I didn't think I would like it- for some reason I thought it would have a coffee taste? Nope, it was perfection in a little cup!"




"Overall, we really enjoyed Sanaa, and will probably go back. I think we are more likely to repeat it for dinner, but either way I think I would ask for a window table."




And one last pic, this one of the Sanaa Dinner Menu...

"We went back and finished our day off in animal kingdom! Another great day in the world!" ​

3 January Game Points Earned + 6 Bonus Points Earned for 3 menu pics, pics of quietgirl & DGF, and Misc. pics from Kidani Village

 

[jabead]

Now for an update sent to last night by DonaldDoleWhip.


You might recall that his last update (posted on Sunday) was from his dinner at Sanaa.
So picking up from there...


DDW said, "After our dinner at Sanaa, we went to Animal Kingdom for a little while. This was one of the first times I've been in AK after dark - it was beautiful."

"Expedition Everest is really fun in the dark!"

"The following day, we had lunch at the Saratoga Springs Resort. An odd choice, I know, but Artist's Palette has some interesting items on the menu!"



Artist's Palette

Lobster Club Sandwich with vegetable slaw

An inside view


DDW said, "My friends both had this. It looked so good! I was slightly jealous of their lunch."

Cobb Salad with chicken, boiled egg, avocado, bacon, tomato, onions, and goat cheese with mustard-thyme vinaigrette.


"This was my choice. It wasn't a lobster club but it was still delcious, so I can't complain."




DDW added, "This was my first time eating at Artist's Palette - it was definitely worth it."





I'm going to save the second part of DonaldDoleWhip's update for another time, but I will leave you this teaser pic...

3 January Game Points Earned + 1 Bonus Point for the AK nighttime pics

 

[mousiemom]

It's Pam, i did a report on our trip back in Nov. and we are planning another one 4/15-4/19 and i would love to do another one for everybody!!!

 

[jmm476]

These Sanaa updates are really making me want to eat there! And since when does DDW eat goat cheese? Is he becoming a goat cheese convert?!

 

[Kathymford]

We did the tour of Sanaa when we stayed there last April and you get free Naan and 3 different sauces (my childish DBF calls it Nom Nom bread)!

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

These Sanaa updates are really making me want to eat there! And since when does DDW eat goat cheese? Is he becoming a goat cheese convert?!

I have to admit, I don't hate goat cheese as much as I used to.

 

[disneybride96]

"The following day, we had lunch at the Saratoga Springs Resort. An odd choice, I know, but Artist's Palette has some interesting items on the menu!"

We call it the "grown up" food court. Great food for a CS!

 

[BlovesC]

Oh my gosh, I was so behind and had so many amazing posts to catch up on. Barb, your Christmas pictures absolutely floored us, and Charlie pouted for a good hour or two about not being lucky enough to be in your family!

I love all the BOG updates, I look forward to trying lunch there next week!

YAY for DDW being back in Disney, and for finally having an enjoyable meal at Sanaa!

And Emme's cuteness has reached a RIDICULOUS level in some of those pics!

 

[jabead]

It's Pam, i did a report on our trip back in Nov. and we are planning another one 4/15-4/19 and i would love to do another one for everybody!!!

Hi Pam! I really haven't thought that far ahead, to be honest with you. If there is still interest and my schedule permits it, I might still be doing this in April. If so, I would love to have again.

Oh my gosh, I was so behind and had so many amazing posts to catch up on. Barb, your Christmas pictures absolutely floored us, and Charlie pouted for a good hour or two about not being lucky enough to be in your family!

You and Charlie are officially invited to join our family. Afterall, then I could use you as an excuse to my (non-Disney fan) DH for having to go to the Orlando area. I mean, we have to go visit family, right? It just so happens that Disney World is conveniently close by.

 

[jabead]

Ok, it's time for some updates now...and I have several for you this evening.


Our First Update of the Day was sent to us this morning by quietgirl.


She said, "We were still pretty full from our Sanaa lunch, so we decided to split something from the food court at POR for dinner last night."



Riverside Mill



But first some menu pics...

"We decided on the Create your own Pasta- we chose chicken penne pesto with mushrooms, olives, artichokes, roasted tomatoes, prosciutto, and Parmesan cheese."

"This was HUGE! The two of us easily split this, and neither of us went hungry. It came with a piece of bread, and I could have used a snack credit to get a side salad, but I didn't think we'd need it- and we didn't."

"I also got a slice of cheesecake, with the fruit topping on the side."




"I'm not usually much of a pasta person, but this was really good and very filling, and the cheesecake was fantastic. Overall, the meal was a nice surprise, and really more than I was expecting for a food court.
It really helped cement my new love for POR!"
​

3 January Game Points Earned + 4 Bonus Points for First Update of the Day and menu pics, which covered Breakfast, Lunch/Dinner, & snacks